Man City star’s agent breaks silence on deal ‘agreement’ claim amid interest from Arsenal and Barca

Lewis Oldham
Man City star Gundogan

The agent of Ilkay Gundogan has dismissed reports suggesting he has “agreed” a contract with Man City or one of the other clubs interested in him.

The midfielder’s future is in doubt at the moment as his contract at Man City is set to expire in the coming weeks.

Man City are unsurprisingly desperate to keep the 32-year-old as he has been in superb form for the Premier League champions over the past couple of seasons.

He has emerged as one of the main leaders at Man City and he often rises to the occasion for Pep Guardiola in big games.

Gundogan netted a stunning brace in the FA Cup final over the weekend as Man City beat local rivals Man Utd 2-1 at Wembley. He has now been involved in 18 goals in 50 appearances this season.

Guardiola will hope Gundogan can make a positive impact this weekend as Man City look to complete the treble with a win over Serie A giants Inter Milan in the Champions League final.

There has been significant interest in Gundogan in recent months. It has been expected for a while that he will join La Liga outfit Barcelona in the summer but Arsenal have joined them in battling to sign the midfielder. 

But his agent – Ilhan Gundogan – has indicated that “nothing has been agreed” with any club.

“Nothing has been agreed with City or any other club,” he told Fabrizio Romano.

“The recent reports are not true. Ilkay is only focused on the [Champions League] final.”

READ MORE: Manchester City win the FA Cup… 16 Conclusions on Man Utd, Stones, De Gea, Gundogan, Sancho

Guardiola insisted after Man City’s FA Cup triumph that they are “working” on a new contract for Gundogan.

“The player is exceptional. This season what he has done is just exceptional,” Guardiola said.

“Not just being part of the important moments and I don’t forget the two goals he scored against Aston Villa [in 2022] and this season many times he’s scored important goals.

“It’s for the fact how important he is for many, many reasons. It was the best way to start a final, knowing there were 89 minutes or more of the 90 minutes left. Of course, it was an important moment.”

When asked about Gundogan’s future, Guardiola added: “He knows what I think.

“Maybe some of you know it, we are neighbours, we live on the same floor so for many years he is a close friend of mine.

“He plays exceptionally. Hopefully, we can finish in a good way. [Director of football] Txiki [Begiristain] is working [on the contract]. The season he has done is exceptional.”

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